USB flash drives market to reach volume sales of 561 million units by 2018

The USB flash drives market has been forecast to reach volume sales of 561 million units by 2018, driven by the launch of the USB 3.0 and USB 3.1 standards for high-speed data transfer, the increase in USB flash drive memory capacities, and the introduction of customized USB models.

An important growth driver is the rapid penetration of the USB 3.0 standard driven by its capability to provide data transfer rates of 1.25 Gbps to a maximum of 5Gbps, which was more than 10 times faster than the 480Mbps speed of USB 2.0.

Future growth in the market will be driven by the USB 3.1 standard launched through 2013.

Defined as a removable flash memory storage device, USB flash drives have become an indispensable part of modern life.

Key benefits of USB flash drives that have encouraged its mass adoption over the years include ease of use, portability, convenience, widespread compatibility, ability to store large volumes of data, higher read and write speed as compared to other optical storage devices, interoperability across all platforms, and improvements in security in the form of password protection or encryption/decryption, among others.

USB flash drives have excellent durability with average life of a frequently used device ranging up to 10 years.
Increasing usage of USB flash drives over the years for storing, transferring, and organising digital content such as word documents, excel spreadsheets, power point presentations, personal mails, sound files, images and other vital business data, programs and applications also represents a significant growth driver.

According to a recent market report, 'USB Flash Drives: A Global Strategic Business Report,' Europe represents the largest regional market worldwide, while Asia-Pacific looks set to represent the fastest growing regional market, experiencing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.2% over the next five years.

Growth in the region is driven by steady economic growth, growing consumption of computing devices, proliferation of smartphones and tablets, and increasing adoption of storage devices for storing, transferring, and sharing content, particularly in China and India.

For more information on the USB flash drives market, see the latest research: USB Flash Drives Market

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